


Our Cat

by LilacChocolate



Series: Rin & Nitori [13]
Category: Free!
Genre: Boyfriends, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Cats, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Kissing, Kittens, Lazy Mornings, M/M, Morning Cuddles, Sleepy Cuddles, rintori - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-10 21:20:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8939773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilacChocolate/pseuds/LilacChocolate
Summary: On the way back to their apartment, Rin and Ai find a three-legged kitten.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [iguana_ism](https://archiveofourown.org/users/iguana_ism/gifts).



‘Thank you for taking me out for dinner, Rin-senpai.’

Rin tutted but joined his hand with Ai’s. ‘Really? Senpai? You left high school five months ago and I left over a year ago. You are allowed to call me by my first name without an honorific. You don’t call me -senpai when we have sex.’

‘Senpai!’ Ai looked around, but luckily, no one was out on the street. It was late at night, and the couple were heading back to their Tokyo apartment. Rin had spent his first year as a high school graduate in Australia, but then he transferred to the same university as Haru to pursue his swimming dream. His boyfriend of three years, Nitori Aiichirou, had finished high school five months ago and had moved to Tokyo to be with Rin once he had gotten confirmation from his university of them accepting him to study there. After a year of being separated, the boys couldn’t be happier to be back together.

They’d been out for dinner in Akihabara to celebrate Ai getting almost full marks in his first set of exams. As they walked back to their apartment along the quiet streets just on the outskirts of Akihabara, both men heard a meow, then some laughing.

‘Senpai? Is that a cat?’

Rin nodded and the meowing and laughing was heard again. They followed the noise and found four drunk salary men stood outside a bar who were terrorising a black kitten with only three legs. One of the salary men crouched down and tried to pull the cat’s remaining black leg out from under her and Ai gasped.

‘We have to save her, Rin-senpai!’

Rin wasn’t a big fan of cats, but if it made him seem like a good person to his boyfriend, then he would do it. He let go of Ai’s hand and walked over to the men. ‘Oi. Leave the kitten alone.’

The men just laughed and the one crouched down yanked the back leg and the kitten fell down with a cry. Rin grabbed the kitten and ran back to Ai with her. The men tried to follow, but they were too drunk and one fell over and the other three all fell to the pavement trying to help him up.

Rin made it back to Ai and the smaller man took the kitten and held it close to his chest. ‘Oh, Rin-senpai, she’s shivering. We need to take her back to our apartment and feed her or she’ll die.’

Rin sighed, about to say no, but then Ai looked up at him with wide blue eyes. He could never deny his boyfriend anything when he looked at him like that. ‘Fine. I think we have some tuna in the fridge.’

Ai smiled and kissed his boyfriend on the cheek. ‘Thank you, senpai.’ The grey-haired boy almost skipped all the way back to their apartment with the kitten nestled inside his scarf and jacket. Despite Rin’s dislike of cats, he had to admit that his boyfriend did look cute with the kitten cuddled against him like that.

Once the door to the apartment was unlocked, the kitten jumped out of Ai’s arms and ran straight for the kotatsu and hid under it, identifying it as a heat source. Ai smiled as he took off his shoes, scarf, and jacket, then he sat down at the kotatsu, watching the kitten that was curled up directly under the heater. Ai reached out a hand and stroked the kitten’s back and she started to purr and Ai squealed. He’d always wanted a cat but his dad was allergic to them. But it wasn’t like Rin would let him keep it.

Rin smiled as he took off his shoes and coat. He hadn’t seen Ai as happy as this since he had moved to Tokyo. Ai was quite introverted and was more suited to the small town he was from, but Rin knew that Ai would do anything for him, even if that meant getting into a university he didn’t like very much just so he could be with Rin. The redhead had tried to make his boyfriend reconsider. He didn’t think them being together would be a worthy compensation for Ai’s education, but luckily, once he started attending, Ai liked the university more than he first had. The only downside was the bustling city.

The butterfly swimmer strode into the small kitchen and emptied a can of tuna into a bowl, then filled another bowl up with water, and he carried them into the living room. He was barely two steps into the room when the kitten stuck her head out from under the kotatsu and started to meow. Rin put the two bowls down and the kitten went straight for the tuna. She lapped it up at high speed and Ai watched.

‘She must have been hungry.’

Rin nodded and sat on the settee. Neither of them spoke for a few moments, both of them watching the kitten eat and drink her fill.

‘Senpai?’ Ai asked after a moment.

‘We’re not keeping her.’

‘I know. I just wanted to ask if she could at least stay the night. She’s still really cold.’

Rin sighed. ‘Fine. But when you go to class in the afternoon, you walk back through Akihabara and leave her outside the bar.’

Ai smiled. ‘Of course, Rin-senpai!’ The grey-haired boy left the room, and he came back with a blanket. He spread it out under the kotatsu and the kitten eyed it up before scampering over and making itself at home. Ai bit his lip in happiness and looked over at his boyfriend. ‘Shall we go to bed?’

Rin nodded and he opened the sliding doors at the other end of the living room. Ai went through them, Rin following, making sure to shut the sliding doors behind them so that the kitten couldn’t get into their bedroom.

…

In the morning, Rin woke up first. Ai was still snoozing in his arms, lips formed in a half-pout, half-smile. Rin loved looking at Ai when he slept. Or whenever, really, but Ai got embarrassed whenever Rin stared for too long. When Ai was asleep, he was still beautiful, but he was so unaware of it, which only made him more stunning.

There was a purring sound and Rin looked up. At the bottom of the bed was the black kitten, curled up in a ball and sleeping. Rin frowned, but then he sighed. He knew Ai already loved the little cat, and it would make him so happy if they kept it. And it wasn’t like their apartment building had a policy against pets. And if the kitten would make staying indoors more fun for Ai, then it would definitely be worth it.

Ai stirred in his arms and smiled up at his boyfriend. ‘Morning, Rin…’

The redhead smiled. His boyfriend only forgot to use the honorific during sex, or when he was sleepy after just waking up. Rin leaned down and kissed the tip of Ai’s nose. ‘Guess who’s joined us?’

‘Hmm?’ Ai sat up and smiled when he saw that the sliding door had been pushed open and that the kitten was now curled up on their bed. He started to stroke the kitten and she awoke with a quiet meow. Ai giggled and tickled the kitten’s tummy. ‘You shouldn’t have open the sliding doors. Naughty kitty.’ He giggled again and the kitten leaned her head up and gave one of Ai’s fingers a soft nibble. The grey-haired boy laughed harder and held up his finger for Rin to see. ‘She has sharp teeth, just like you, Rin-senpai!’

Rin just smiled and stroked the cat, watching as Ai played with it. ‘We need to take you back to Akihabara today,’ the smaller man said, and the cat whined as if she understand. ‘I know, but you’re a fierce kitten. You can scare off all the drunk salarymen.’

The redhead sighed and kissed Ai’s temple. ‘After breakfast, we’ll go to the vets. Make sure she’s alright. And then we’ll go and get some proper food and bedding, and toys, or… whatever cats need.’

A large smiled broke out on Ai’s face. ‘Thank you so much, senpai!’ He let go of the kitten and hugged his boyfriend. ‘I’ll make up for it in some way! I promise.’

‘Sex is fine.’

Ai blushed and buried his head against Rin’s chest. ‘I knew you were going to say that…’

‘How about you start calling me Rin without the –senpai then?’

‘Okay.’ Ai lifted up his head and kissed his boyfriend on the lips. ‘Thank you, Rin.’

Rin smiled. ‘What do you want to call her then?’

‘Hmmm… RinRin?’

The redhead tutted. ‘But that’s my nickname…’

Ai laughed and picked up the kitten, sitting her down between them on the sheets. ‘I thought you hated it when I called you that.’

Rin looked away with a blush. ‘I don’t like it when you call me it in public.’

‘Aww! I’m sorry, RinRin!’ Ai started to laugh, his cheeks hurting, and Rin shut him up with a kiss.

‘You’re so rude…’

‘But you love me.’ Ai stuck his tongue out at his boyfriend and turned back to the kitten. ‘Now, what should we call you…?’

Rin smiled as he watched his boyfriend. Ai was right; Rin did love him.

**Author's Note:**

> http://lilacchocolate.tumblr.com/


End file.
